Michelle Darmody: How to bake the perfect coffee and walnut cake in under an hour

The cake will keep for two to three days in an airtight container after it has been iced.

Some flavours are meant to go together, they become a paired classic for a reason. Coffee and walnut are two such flavours. Both can be astringent or bitter on their own, yet they work very well as a pair. It also helps when they are enveloped in butter and sugar. The sugar adds sweetness, and the butter adds a softness in your mouth. This combination makes for a great, and very classic cake.

The cake will keep for two to three days in an airtight container after it has been iced. Make sure to keep it in a cool place, but do not store it in the fridge. The coldness of the fridge will dry out the sponge and harden the buttercream. If you prefer to make the cake the day before you need it, wait until it is cooled after baking and wrap it in parchment. Keep it airtight overnight then make the icing the next day, and ice just before serving.

I happily get twelve slices from this cake as it is quite rich, particularly with the layer of buttercream icing through the centre, as well as on the top. The longer you whip the icing, the lighter and smoother it will become, as more and more air bubbles get trapped inside. I like to whip it until it has at least doubled in volume. I find adding even the small amount of milk listed in the recipe helps the icing to become spreadable and it gives it a nice sheen.

Coffee and Walnut Cake

recipe by:Michelle Darmody

This combination makes for a great, and very classic cake.

Servings

12

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 35 mins

Total Time

 55 mins

Course

 Baking

Ingredients

• 225g soft butter

• 215g golden castor sugar

• 3 eggs

• 40ml strong espresso, cooled

• 225g self-raising flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 100g walnuts, finely chopped

• For the icing:

• 150g soft butter

• 300g icing sugar

• 30ml strong espresso coffee

• 1 tsp milk

• To decorate

• a handful of walnut halves

Method

1. Heat your oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Line an 8in-round tin with baking parchment. I use either a spring-form or a loose-based tin.

2. Beat the butter and the sugar until they are light and fluffy. I use the whisk attachment in my mixer for this to add lots of air.

3. Lightly beat the eggs and espresso together with a fork.

4. Sieve the flour and baking powder together and add in the walnuts.

5. Combine the three mixtures in the mixing bowl with a wooden spoon. Make sure to scrape all the butter and sugar from the side of the mixing bowl.

6. Scoop the batter into your prepared tin and smooth it on top.

7. Bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

8. Once cool enough to handle remove the cake from the tin and place it onto a wire rack, peeling off the baking parchment. Allow it to cool completely.

9. To make the icing beat all of the ingredients until light and fluffy. The milk helps to loosen the mixture and makes it easier to spread.

10. Cut the cold cake into two even-sized discs. Cover the top of each disk with the icing. Sandwich the two discs together so you have a layer of icing in the centre and one on top. Press the walnut halves into the icing to decorate the cake.

Tips to bake the perfect coffee and walnut cake

If the skewer is not coming out clean from the centre of your cake and the outsides look fully baked after the allotted time, cover the cake in tin foil before popping it back in for four-minute intervals.

It is always best to place your cake in the centre of your oven to make sure it has the best chance of baking evenly and for the air to circulate. It is good practice to make sure that one of the racks is placed in the middle of the oven before you begin to heat the oven. And, also to make sure that there is not another rack too close above it that will hit against your cake as you put it in or take it out.

If your cake feels too chewy it is probably because it was overmixed. Because flour contains gluten, the cake will become tough and chewy if the flour has been overworked. It is best to stop mixing as soon as all of the ingredients in the three mixtures are evenly incorporated.

If the crumb on your cake feels dry it is probably because it was baked at too high a temperature. All ovens are different and yours may need to be adjusted slightly if you feel it often bakes quicker than recipes state. If you feel the cake is past the point of tastiness due to over baking you can add the simple syrup listed below and allow the cake to sit for a few hours while it soaks in and moistens the cake, similar to the way a lemon drizzle cake is made.

Another reason the cake could be too dry is because too much flour was added into the recipe by mistake. It may seem a little obvious to say but it is important to measure the ingredients exactly when you are baking a cake.

Variations

Chocolate Coffee and Nut cake

I find that a coating of ganache changes this cake quite dramatically. I would usually heat 400mls of cream and stir in 400g of dark chocolate chips and leave it set until it is the consistency of butter. Whisk the ganache vigorously until it has lighted in colour. Cut the cake to make two discs, as in the recipe above. Spread a layer of the whipped ganache on one disc so that it is in the middle of the cake, place the other disc on top then cover the cake, including the sides, with the ganache. You can also vary the cake by substituting a mixture of nuts for the walnuts, although chocolate and walnut go quite well.

A boozy version

This cake is a variation on an Irish Coffee. It is for adults rather than younger family members. Brush the warm cake generously with a whiskey simple syrup and let it soak into the sponge. To make the simple syrup add 55mls of water and 50g of sugar into a saucepan and heat gently until the sugar is dissolved. Add 15mls of whiskey. Allow the mixture to cool then use a pastry brush to brush it over the warm coffee and walnut sponge cake. I then cover this with whipped mascarpone rather than butter cream. Whip 200g of mascarpone with 2 tsp of vanilla extract and 1 tbs of icing sugar and cover the top of the cake.

Coffee and walnut buns

You can make coffee and walnut buns with this recipe instead of a cake. Place 12 paper bun cases into a tin and divide the mixture between them. You will only need to bake them for about 15 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. When they are cooled, pipe a generous swirl of coffee buttercream on top.